The streets were flooded with Pirates and pedestrians for the first day of the four day event.

A total of nine ships are docked on both sides of the Minnesota Slip inviting Adventurous travelers to board and be whisked back in time.

With some boats as old as 88 years old maintenance is key.

"This is a wooden vessel so it always needs a lot of love and attention...all the rigging needs its own maintenance so we do a lot of tar and service and things like that to keep the water out of the rig and extend the life of the sails and the lines and the wood," says Jill Hughes, First Mate on the Pride of Baltimore II.

Hughes describes the process of setting sails on the 11–sail vessel.

"Every sail has at least three lines on it and every crew member knows exactly what each line and every line on the ship does."

The boats need constant maintenance but Captain Josh Rowan of the Schooner Hindu said just being on the water makes it worth it.

"Once you're out there and you're sailing there's nothing like it. It talks to you."

And when asked the difference between modern and older vessels...

"They say modern boats have personality...old wooden boats have soul."

Crews live on–board for months at a time.

"I love the community that you get. All the crew is really great and you have to work together if not you can't get the job done," Hughes adds.

"There's a lot of romance and adventure associated with the tall ships themselves and when you can bring nine of them together at the same place at the same time it's a very special time in history," says Terry Mattson, Executive Producer of the Tall Ships Festival.

Tickets for tours are still available but daily sails are currently sold out.